the IAFS Honors Program
Majors in the International Affairs Program have the opportunity toÌýgraduateÌýwith departmental honors with threeÌýgrades: cum laude, magna cum laude, and summa cum laude. Honors are awarded by the University Honors Council on the basis of: overall academic record, performance in the writing of an honors thesis, and performance in an oral exam.ÌýPlease refer to our IAFS honors standards for specificÌýinformation.
Candidates for honors in International Affairs must have achieved:
- at least a 3.3Ìýoverall grade point average,
- at least a 3.4 grade point average in International Affairs courses,
- and must have 90 or more credits and should apply one academic year before they will be graduating.
- For example, students graduating in Spring 2024 should apply in March 2023 to be part of the Fall 23-Sp24 cohort.Ìý
Candidates for honors in International Affairs must also complete:Ìý
- the International Affairs seminar IAFS 4800 in the Fall semester and thesis writing class IAFS 4810 in the Spring semester.
- To reviewÌýIAFS 4800 syllabiÌýfor examples of what the course entails, visit the IAFS Syllabi page.Ìý
- IAFS 4810 may count towards your geographic concentration or functional areaÌýif the thesis topic is relevant.Ìý
- an honors thesis written in close consultation with a faculty member whose serves as the primary thesis advisor.
- More information about Thesis Advisors and CommitteesÌýin is the "Resources for Honors Students" section below.
- a one-hour oral examÌýadministered by a three member faculty committee consisting of: 1) IAFS Honors Program Director; 2) primary thesis advisor; 3)Ìýat least one other CU professor.
The Honors Program Director is Dr. Molly Todd, please emailÌýDr. Todd or IAFS@colorado.edu with any questions about the IAFS Honors Program.Ìý
​IAFS Honors Thesis Defense
When you are approaching the time when you will be presenting and defending your IAFS Honors Thesis, generally during the Spring semester, you must completeÌýtheÌýÌýat least 48 hours before your schdeduled defense. The worksheet is a DocuSign PowerForm which you will fill in the requested information and submit. Once submitted,Ìýthe form will be sent to the IAFS Honors Program Director.Ìý*The PowerForm must be completed in one sitting.Ìý
ToÌýcomplete the IAFS Thesis Defense Worksheet, the following information must be provided:
- Thesis Committee member Names, Department/Program, and Email
- Date and time of thesis defense
- Overall GPA and
- IAFS GPA,Ìýcalculate using this worksheet
IAFS Honors Thesis Database
IAFS is proud of all theÌýHonors Thesis submitted and defended. To see the wide range of topics and research completed by all IAFS honors students, you can visit the CU Library .Ìý
Outstanding IAFS Honors Theses
Every year, IAFS honors program undergraduate students present phenomenal, high-level research theses. Below, we have some of our most outstanding IAFS honors theses. You are welcomeÌýto browse through and read one, and be in touch if you'd like more information on these topics or their authors.